Hi there. First thing I want to say is thanks to all of our Aalto customers, and to everyone who has spread the word that we have something new and exciting here.
Also, thanks to everyone who has sent comments or ideas for how to improve Aalto. I'm programming this synth by myself, so unlike organizations with more inertia I'm free to make use of feedback really quickly. You'll see some of that reflected in the 1.1 update.
I had hoped that Aalto 1.1 would be out this week, but some things are taking longer than I'd hoped. Sometimes fixing the big problems is easy but the small ones are hard... go figure. Currently I'm shooting for late next week. Though all schedules can slip, I think it's better if I let you know what my plans are. So here's my current roadmap for you:
1.1: mid Oct, performance improvements, parameter automation fixes, host sync, alternate tunings, more documentation, sundry bug fixes.
1.2: mid Nov, more performance improvements, UI improvements, installer, patch management features.
1.3: mid Dec, sound engine update, delivery via web site, Mac and Windows VST.
Some online publications have posted very generous reviews of Aalto.
Check out Seattle's Waveformless and Berlin's AudioNewsRoom. And whether or not you read Italian, this very extensive and thoughtful review by Enrico Cosimi is worth a look at Audio Accordo.it. It's got a nice movie showing a lot of the presets and some new creations, and a system diagram that should probably work its way into the manual.
And most recently, James Patrick at the Institute for Recording and Production in Minneapolis has posted a 3-part video introduction he made for his class! Check it out on Vimeo.
When I designed Aalto, I had a few main goals in mind: make it sound good and flexible, make the interface simple and intuitive. Of course, these goals all make conflicting demands on the shape of the instrument and, well... product design is hard. So it was really gratifying to stumble on this weblog from Michael Lemmon, a Portland-based musician and product designer who got exactly what I was trying to do. Thanks Michael, and keep in touch!
You have built a really inspiring instrument. It's kind of a profound achievement, when you think about it.
Thanks for your work.
I look forward to the updates, but I'm very happy already.
- c
Randy
I've been playing with the demo for some time, and just now purchased Aalto. I have to tell you, this is truly one of the most amazing and inspirational soft synths I've used in a long time, both in terms of its sonic quality and creative potential, and its brilliant and innovative UI. You should be very proud.
I'm very excited about future Aalto development and was very happy to purchase it, especially as it may help bring the Soundplane into existence. I'll likely be one of your first customers when it's done. :)
Keep up the great work.
Free